Sheep output in Northern Ireland is running 75,767 head or 16% lower for the year to date in 2025.

Sheep slaughterings of 167,804 head are running 18,629 or 10% lower.

This includes hogget and lamb throughput of 154,987 running 20,397 head or 12% lower, while ewe and ram throughput of 12,817 head is running 1,768 or 16% higher, as detailed in Table 1.

This follows on from the sheep kill of 456,886 head in 2024 falling by 45,919 or 9% when compared with 2023 levels.

The sheep kill in Northern Ireland generally comprises in the region of 55% to 60% of total sheep output, with exports to Ireland historically accounting for the balance, along with smaller numbers to Britain.

Live exports

The number of sheep exported live either for direct slaughter or under a store or breeding certificate is running at just over 212,000 head. This equates to a reduction of 57,138 head or a sizeable 21.2% reduction.

This is being driven by a 35,450 head reduction in the number of sheep exported to Ireland for direct slaughter and a 28,128 fall in the number of sheep exported to Britain for direct slaughter.

Exports to farms and for direct slaughter to destinations in continental Europe continue to build on the impressive growth recorded in 2024.

Changing dynamics

The dynamics of live sheep exports has varied in the last 18 months. The number of sheep exported for direct slaughter to Ireland in 2024 reduced by 21,641 head and was recorded at 319,106.

Additionally, the number of sheep exported to farms in Ireland, at 49,360 sheep, reduced by 38,676 head.

In contrast, the number of sheep exported to farms in Britain in 2024 jumped by 50,881 head to reach 152,805.

There was also an increase of over 18,000 sheep exported to Britain for direct slaughter, with growth coming from practically zero.

There was similar growth recorded to destinations in continental Europe, with 20,600 sheep exported for direct slaughter and 6,389 sheep exported to farms.

The marked growth in exports kept a floor under output, with total sheep output only reducing by less than 10,000 head in 2024.

This compares with big reductions across many major sheep-producing or -exporting nations in Europe, where, for example, sheep throughput in Ireland fell by over 375,000 head or 13.6%.